Mumbai: Among the alumni of Antonio De Souza High School (ANZA), Byculla, who gathered at the historic school's 200th-anniversary celebrations last weekend was Libia Lobo Sardesai.
The 101-year-old freedom fighter from Goa, along with Vaman Sardesai from All India Radio (AIR)—whom she later married—ran an underground radio station. They broadcast news about the liberation movement in the 1950s and 1960s, a time when the Portuguese regime suppressed all communications and censored newspapers and even personal letters.
Lobo, who is of Goan origin, was born in Mumbai and was training to be a lawyer when she decided to join the struggle of her people to throw off the yoke of colonial rule and merge with independent India.
Lobo used her experience in AIR to run the illegal radio station along with Sardesai and another patriot, Nicolau Menezes, to broadcast from the jungles in Portuguese and Konkani, providing moral succor to a population that was facing food shortages and repression.
The radio was known as 'Voice of Freedom', though the service also had Portuguese and Konkani names. Speaking from Panaji, Goa, where she lives, Lobo said, "There was no freedom of speech, no freedom of association, and no freedom to write. You could not even send a wedding invitation without being censored. It was a Portuguese dictatorship."
Goa was liberated by Indian forces on 19 December 1961. After the territory's liberation, Lobo worked in the tourism department and later practised as a lawyer. Lobo was honoured with the Padma Shri, one of the country's highest civilian awards, in 2025.
Lobo, who will be 102 years old in three months, was the chief guest at the bicentennial celebrations. She passed out of the school, which was then a co-ed institution, in 1940. Lobo said that she travelled by tram from her home near Crawford Market to the school. "I never expected to see the bicentennial. So taking part in the event was like getting a trophy," she said.
Advocate Cyril Dara, an alumnus and the chief convener of the celebration, who was honoured for putting together the bicentennial event, said that eminent guests and over 700–800 alumni witnessed the three-day programme. "A souvenir was released with important history on 23 January. As a convener, I would like to thank everyone for the support and for making the bicentennial celebration a grand success. All glory and thanks to the Lord Almighty. The entire celebration was truly very blessed," said Dara.
Also Watch:
Antonio De Souza High School was established in 1825 and is popularly called ANZA in memory of its founders, Antonio De Souza and John Braz Fernandes. It began as a co-educational institution but later became a boys' school. Among its alumni are actor, director, and producer Raj Kapoor; poet Nissim Ezekiel; gold medallist in the 1948 London Olympics, Leo Hillary Knowles Pinto; silver medallist at the 1951 New Delhi Asian Games, Banoo Gazdar; hockey player Gulam Moontasir; Bombay High Court judge R. M. Sawant; hockey player Nasir Khan; and silver medallist at the 1951 Asian Games, Pat Mendonca.
